"Photography is the only language that can be understood anywhere in the world."
While you read this, I want you to tap into your inner photographer. Think about how you feel taking pictures, laughing as you capture a hilarious moment, smiling big with someone you love, or staring in wonder at a beautiful sunset as you take a picture. Think about how you feel looking through your old photographs, reminiscing of fun and sweet memories with family and friends. As it's said, "a picture is worth a thousand words", and a picture can make you feel a thousand emotions as well. Little do we know how beneficial taking and looking through photos actually is, however photography brings meaning to the present moment, and helps us find more value in the past. Overall, taking photos and capturing memories enrich your life and teach us all how to slow down and value life's precious moments.
When you take pictures, you are practicing mindfulness. When you take a picture, you are acknowledging that moment and its significance. You're looking at the present and deciding that it's worth remembering. Even taking the picture itself requires some thought; figuring out the lighting, the angle, and photographing the moment as you see it is a skill that requires analyzing the environment around you. This process requires your undivided attention, which causes you not to worry about other things besides the picture. Your stress starts to melt away, and you experience a great appreciation for the world around you. Photography enables you to look at the world in a new way, and it even enables you to see things you wouldn't see otherwise.
Along with the obvious, photography inspires creativity. As you're looking through this new lens, you are capturing something special. When you put a memory into picture, you are making that memory immortal. Pictures will stand the test of time, and you'll always be able to relive those memories by flipping through your photos. With pictures, you'll remember all the fond memories, and you're likely to be happier with your life. I mean, who wouldn't, when you flip through photos and are reminded of the amazing memories you've had? When I flip through my old photos, including the weird ones from my quirky childhood, I'm reminded of how blessed I am. This is not an unusual opinion either, most happier families have an extensive collection of pictures that are kept around the house and in photo albums. Pictures are a way to look back, which is something that our hurried, ambitious, and fast-paced American culture has come to neglect.
This Spring Break, take a few pictures. Or several pictures, maybe even enough pictures to fill an entire album. You're not going to get this moment or this week back. These memories that you make today can be captured and looked back on throughout the rest of your life. If you set out for moments that you'll want to photograph, you'll automatically be looking for the worth in your day, and you'll find yourself more positive and joyful as you find deeper meanings in your moments. Don't let the day get away from you, take pictures of things that have value. Don't just stop at one thousand, make your pictures worth millions of words, and you'll find that those pictures bring more worth to your life.
